Election Observation

Ireland is committed to supporting democratisation, human rights and the rule of law as a key element of our foreign policy. Election observation is a key element of this commitment and we have contributed observers to international election observation missions since the 1990s.

Through our 170 strong Roster, Ireland proudly participates in EU Missions to Africa, South America and Asia, and with the OSCE to Member States, most recently with the EU in observation of the General Elections in Ecuador, and Parliamentary Elections in Kosovo.

The Election Observation Roster facilitates the participation of suitably skilled and vetted volunteers who are available to participate at short notice in Election Observation Missions under the aegis of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Union (EU).

On average, the Department sends observers on 12-18 election observation missions per year. Short Term Observers (STOs) are generally in country for 7-14 days, while Long Term Observers (LTOs) can spend up to 60 days or more observing the election process.

The number of deployments fluctuates on an annual basis, depending on the number of requests received and the success of Irish roster nominees being selected for EU and OSCE missions.

Read Volunteer Stories

• Malawi - Paul Anderson
• Malawi - Duncan Hart

• Guyana - Tania Banotti

• Philippines - Órla Fagan
• Philippines - Gillian Ivory

• Albania - Ralph McGarry
• Albania - Andrew Forde
• Albania - Emily King

• Ecuador - Geraldine O'Neill
• Ecuador - Claire O'Neill
• Ecuador - Dorcha Lee

• Kosovo - Jimmy Somers
• Kosovo - Janet Colgan

In September 2025, two members of Ireland’s Election Observation Roster participated in the EU Election Observation Mission (EOM) to the Republic of Malawi, to observe its General Elections.

Each representative was paired with a partner from another EU member state, observing an election that, according to the EU EOM, was peaceful and pluralist, and where fundamental rights of political participation were respected. For further information, see European Union Election Observation Mission 2025 Preliminary Report here.

I joined the department’s roster in 2024 and, after several earlier EU core team appointments in Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, got my first short term observer assignment to Georgia's parliamentary elections late 2024.

It was something I’d wanted to do for a long time, knowing that the role of an observer to hit the ground running, understand the people and the local politics inside out and file regular, analytical reports about it all, is not so different from the role of a reporter.

I’m just back from Malawi, which I discovered more than earns its reputation as the “warm heart of Africa”. People here, from officials to political activists to ordinary voters, have been incredibly welcoming and open. Passionate too about the elections and what many see as an opportunity for change that only comes every five years.

Some expect that as an EU representative you’re there to offer development aid. Once they understand our role more fully they appreciate the value of observers and welcome our eye on the ground during campaigning and on Election Day itself.

I hope I’ll have many more missions. There’s no job quite like it. It can be exhausting for sure as E-Day approaches and passes, but you never know where you’ll be, what you’ll find and who you’ll work with. When it all comes together, there’s an undeniable magic to it.

Duncan Hart joined the Irish Roster in 2019 and had his first mission in 2023 to Zimbabwe with the EU and again in 2025 with the EU to Malawi.

Duncan spent 12 years working at the former UK Department for International Development, as well as shorter roles in several other government departments. He has experience of working on bilateral aid to southern Africa, Ghana, and Somalia, as well as multilateral policy/funding to the MDBs, UN, and EU.

Since leaving government in 2016, Duncan was the Partnerships Manager for Crown Agents Regional Director for Africa at the National Foundation for Educational Research in east Africa.

Duncan has a BSc in Geography and a MSc in International Relations of the EU, both from Loughborough University. In 2021, he was recognised as a Chartered Geographer, an internationally recognised accreditation for professionals who demonstrate expertise in applying geographical skills, knowledge, and understanding in their career.

In September 2025, a member of Ireland’s Election Observation Roster participated in the EU Election Observation Mission (EOM) to Guyana, to observe its General and Regional Elections. The representative was among the 50 short term observers sent by the EU and was paired with a partner from another EU member state. The election took place in a highly polarized political climate that affected trust in the election administration. Nonetheless, election day was peaceful and efficiently run - see European Union Election Observation Mission 2025 Preliminary Statement here.

I have tallied votes at national and presidential elections in Ireland, worked with political parties and worked for a few years with the UN in the Gaza Strip, so when the Dept of Foreign Affairs issued an open public call to join the election observation roster a few years ago I jumped at the chance. The DFA process is both rigorous and open. You have to have relevant experience, but that experience can be very varied and training is provided.

I haven’t participated in many missions; my trip to Guyana in South America in August 2025 to work as a short term observer was my first in many years. As it happens I was the only Irish observer in the EU mission.

It is a fascinating opportunity to visit a country at election time as it allows you a real insight into their contemporary politics. It is hard work. You have to quickly get on top of local election procedures so you can be effective on election day. You get the opportunity to meet local party representatives and election officials, most of all you get to meet the locals! As the eyes and ears of the EU mission on the ground they rely on Short Term and Long Term Observers to provide real time information on election day and at the count centers right through the night and into the next day. So don’t bank on much sleep.

Usually you are paired with another observer of a different gender and nationality so the ability to get on with people, and work in sometimes challenging conditions e.g. road networks may be poor, communications can be difficult in remote areas, it can be hot…. but these are minor issues compared with the privilege of being part of a mission.

In May 2025, 7 members of Ireland’s Election Observation Roster participated in the EU Election Observation Mission (EOM) to the Philippines, to observe its National Midterm Elections.

Each representative was paired with someone from another EU member state, observing an election that presented significant challenges, including electoral violence, the concentration of political powers among a few families, vote buying and a legal framework marked by significant gaps and ambiguities - see European Union Election Observation Mission 2025 Final Report here.

Meet some of our participating members below:

Órla is a former current affairs researcher with RTÉ Radio 1 where she cut her teeth in politics. On leaving the broadcaster, she trained aspiring female politicians in Sierra Leone as a UN Volunteer, and went on to work with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs as a Public Information Officer and Spokesperson on post-conflict and natural emergencies in Nigeria, Somalia, the Philippines, Nepal, Iraq and Afghanistan. Órla has, through Ireland’s Roster, participated in EOMs to North Macedonia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and the Philippines

Gillian is currently Head of Membership Engagement at Dóchas, the Irish Network of Humanitarian and Development Organisations, and has been a member of the Roster since 2019. Since joining, she has observed a Presidential election in Kazakhstan in 2019, travelled to Colombia three times in 2022 for Parliamentary and Presidential elections, including a run-off, before most recently participating in this EOM to the Philippine National Mid-Term Elections.

Over April and May, 12 members of Ireland’s Election Observation Roster participated in the OSCE-ODIHR Election Observation Mission (EOM) to Albania’s Parliamentary Elections.

Again, each representative was paired with someone from another OSCE member state as they observed a competitive and well administered election - see OSCE-ODIHR Mission Statement of Preliminary Findings and Conclusion here.

I have been working for a local authority in Dublin for over 26 years, and in that time have had the privilege to have worked in a supervisory capacity at polling stations and at election counts, be they local, national, presidential, European, or referendums.

Conscious that important civic duty at a polling or count centre is not the whole story in terms of due democratic process, my interest was drawn to the independent election monitoring space.

Having been successfully appointed to Ireland’s International Election Observation Roster (2024-2028), my participation in the OSCE-ODIHR EOM to Albania was my first experience, and a wonderful introduction to international election observation. Although the days were long, the experience was amazing, and felt really worthwhile. I am proud to have taken part and intend to apply for further missions in the near future.

I have been on the Election Observation Roster since 2019 but Albania was my first mission. It was an excellent experience, and a great privilege. I was deployed to a rural area near Tirana which entailed observation in many remote areas, some even inaccessible to vehicles, over what was an almost 20 hour election day.

I was impressed by the professionalism of Electoral officials in Albania, and it was clear efforts were being made to ensure the integrity of the elections. Having said that, our presence was justified and our findings will hopefully help Albania continuously improve. I feel very lucky that I had the opportunity to work with a group of brilliant observers from right across the OSCE region including my Icelandic partner Karlina, and a fantastic local team, Reala (interpreter) and Erald (driver).

Although it is a very intense experience, I would highly recommend the roster to anyone who has an interest in democracy, human rights and the rule of law. I’m looking forward to my next mission, hopefully in the very near future.

I am a Senior Legal Advisor in the Department of Finance and the Albania mission was my first. I found it to be a fascinating and enriching experience, and would very much welcome the opportunity to observe further elections.

The welcome we received in Albania was warm and generous, and the other short-term observers were extremely interesting and engaging.

Our area of observation was a diverse one, from calm mountain communities with clean air but limited paved roads to get there, to suburban Tirana with its count centres filled with cigarette smoke and boisterous shouting!

A Programme Management Analyst currently, I hold more than 10 years experience in the field of human rights, having previously deployed with the UNHCR to Iraq and to Jordan on resettlement issues. A member of the Roster since 2013, I have participated in five election observation missions to date, most recently on this EU Election Observation Mission to Ecuador.

Our role was to observe the process, which included the count, the assortment of official party representatives and media present, and the handling of issues arising on the validity of specific ballot papers. Our work as election observers does not conclude on election day, particularly in the event of re-counts.

I learned about election observation through my involvement with Trócaire and joined the Roster in 2019. I have participated in 3 missions to date, each of which has been memorable in its own right.

As an EU election observer we always work in pairs, always male-female, and come from different countries, which I think helps with objectivity. On my recent mission to Ecuador we were deployed to our region a few days before the actual polling day. One day was spent selecting and planning our route to the various polling centres. Another day was spent familiarising ourselves with the various local organisations, the regional count centre, the various training events taking place for clerks, returning officers and personnel responsible for voters with disability etc.

This ensured we were familiar with all the venues, personnel, and election processes, making our work much easier and ensuring better visibility on the part of the EU mission.

Election day began at 6.30am with observation of the opening of a polling centre, proceeding to as many stations as possible throughout the day until we observed the closing of the polls, the counting of ballots and the electronic transfer of results.

Finally, we followed the physical ballot boxes to the provincial count centre, where all the ballots from the region were arriving. This part of the day was the most challenging as the counting, checking and re-counting continued into the early hours, with a resumption the following day and, in our case, the day after.

During my 42 years of service in the Army I had extensive experience in serving in war zones, mostly on peace support missions, including Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Iraq and Somalia. I served over 10 years in total in Defence Forces HQ, in senior appointments, mainly in Operations and Logistics. I also did extensive military courses in the US and France and served three years on attachment to DFA in Brussels as Military Advisor and military representative to the WEU and the EU.

Some years before retiring from the Army, on age grounds in 2003, I did an excellent pre-retirement course, which helped me greatly in preparation for my return to the ‘real world’.

I knew I needed both a purpose and a challenge in my future life. My main interests were Peacekeeping, Humanitarian Aid and Democratic Support. John O’Shea of GOAL picked me as a logistics officer with their mission in Niger for six months which ticked the humanitarian box.

DFA /Irish Aid interviewed me, noted my language qualifications, put me on the Election Roster. I went on to do a total of 13 missions, mainly in Africa (Niger, Tunisia, Algeria, Mali, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, DR Congo), but also in Asia (East Timor), and Central and South America (Haiti, Guatemala and Ecuador).

I work in the Department of the Taoiseach. I first became involved in election observation 25 years ago when a friend of mine suggested I join the panel as I was very interested in politics and international affairs and had lived overseas for periods, particularly in Africa. I successfully applied to Ireland’s Election Roster and to date have participated in ten Election Observation Missions.

The mission to Kosovo was hugely positive and was my fourth time covering and organising elections in country. On each occasion I can see major improvements in development and infrastructure.

A Tusla official from the Education Support Services, I work with schools, families, and children to ensure regular school attendance. As someone who has been travelling to the Balkans for 28 years, it is such a privilege to see the progress from conflict and autocracy, to peace building and democracy.

I have been lucky enough to participate in two missions to date, Albania in 2023 and Kosovo in 2025.

In terms of what to expect as an election observer, you can easily be on the go for 16 straight hours - although you won’t necessarily feel it, such is the buzz and excitement. There are local, community gestures that can keep you going too if needed - as was the case with the Albanian local elections in 2023, namely the arrival at 4 am of several slabs of refreshments, courtesy of generous count officials determined to push on through.

Key documents

• OSCE Election Observation Handbook
• EU Election Observation Handbook

• OSCE/ODIHR
• EU Election Observation Missions
• EODS Training Calendar
• Inside an ODIHR Election Observation Mission | OSCE
• Learn more about Ireland’s commitment to human rights